AUSTIN, Texas – Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., executive director of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health and associate vice president for diversity and community engagement at The University of Texas at Austin, has been appointed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to its Standing Committee on Medical and Public Health Research During Large-Scale Emergency Events.

Now De La Cruz and other parents — who say their children with autism are legally entitled to such treatment — are butting heads with Texas officials. And without Medicaid coverage, they must either forgo the therapy or find a way to pay for individual insurance plans that help pick up the costs.

At this point, Daniel [Johnston] is regarded as a genius, a notion that has never been called into question. What does come into question, however, is his daily life; not because it is frowned upon, but because it is mostly a mystery. What we do know about Daniel as a person is brought on by few sources, most of which focus almost entirely on his past struggles with mental illness.

WASHINGTON — A bill that would give states more flexibility to use federal foster care funding to help families stay together cleared its first legislative hurdle on Wednesday. The House Ways and Means Committee approved by voice vote the bipartisan Family First Prevention Services Act (HR 5456).

The hallway that connects the two halls of the E3 Convention is long. It takes about 10 minutes to walk, and its gray walls are draped by DragonBall video game advertisements. Midway, off to one side, a mental health clinic opens its door at 11 o’clock for each of the gaming convention’s three days, a quiet oasis amid the bustle of the video game convention.

Exercise, even a small amount, can help alleviate symptoms of ADHD in adults, according to a new study. About 6 percent of American adults report symptoms consistent with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, which lead to anxiety, depression, low energy and motivation, poor performance at work or school and also increased traffic accidents.

Kansas has become a test center of "trickle down" economics, espoused by economist Arthur Laffer during the Reagan years. The funding problems got so bad that Osawatomie State Hospital's mental health ward had to significantly cut staffing.

The sad truth is that there is no national SWAT team specifically for mental health counseling. There is no FBI for trauma. There is no Homeland Security for PTSD. Today, Orlando needs to come to grips with this heinous act of violence. Tomorrow, we need to respond again to the trauma that the community will feel.

The mass shooting at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida could have a lasting impact on the mental health of the country’s LGBT community. The increasing evidence that homophobia may have motivated the Orlando shooter means that the effects of Sunday’s shooting will likely extend far beyond the city of Orlando itself.

The science of hate is complicated, and there's not a single definitive answer. But psychologists, psychiatrists and sociologists think American culture is more permeated than ever by hate and hateful expression, and hate-inspired violence is more prevalent.

Nearly 6 million American men suffer from depression each year, yet many of them avoid seeking treatment. This aversion to support is likely due to the negative stereotypes surrounding mental illness and, when it comes to men, a (very incorrect) notion that mental health issues are “weak” and not masculine. But more than a handful of celebrities are changing that.

On Thursday afternoon, I had the privilege of sitting down with representatives of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and doing a live Facebook chat about advances in mental illness. It’s a subject that’s both professionally and personally important to me. My focus as a member of the health, science and environment team is the brain, and I have a particular interest in mental illness because I live with bipolar.